game changers

Game Changers:Programs and Practices that are

Shaping the Field

Sarah Pitcock

National Summer Learning Association

NSLA seeks to:• Improve the quality of summer learning opportunities• Expand access to summer learning• Increase demand for summer learning

Today’s Objectives:

Become familiar with summer learning research and program quality indicators

Discuss game changing ideas from programs across the country

Walk away with ideas and tools for using research-based quality indicators to continuously improve your program

Game Changer (noun):

• An event, idea, or procedure that effects a significant shift in the current way of doing or thinking about something.

• Something that changes the landscape.

• An “a-ha” moment where you see something others don’t.

Game Changer “SMARTS”

Forbes says:

Game Changers are Simple, Marketable, Actionable, Relational, Transformative, Scalable

Stakeholder Stakeout

Parents

Staff/Teachers

Youth

GC!

What is the Comprehensive Assessment of Summer

Programs?

(and where did it come from?)

CASP Development

Research from the fields of summer learning, afterschool, youth development, non-profit management and K-12 education

NSLA’s database of site visit reports

Excellence Award applications

In-depth interviews with program staff

CASP Development

80 Indicators of quality on a 4-point rating scale

Interview and Observation tools collect information for feedback reports

National review of content validity

Used in more than 200 program sites to date

Comprehensive Assessment of Summer Programs

Program Infrastructure

PURPOSE

PROGRAM SUSTAINABILITY

PLANNING

STAFF

PARTNERSHIPS

Point-of-Service

INDIVIDUALIZED

INTENTIONAL

INTEGRATED

UNIQUE PROGRAM CULTURE

Quick Reference Guide

Organized by domain

Includes the level 4 rating for each indicator

Integrated Facilitation

Game Changer #1

Providence Public Schools

AfterZone Summer Scholars Program Engage students fully in a summer experience, connect them to caring

adults and provide them with a new set of experiences and a sense of belonging

Increase students’ level of engagement during the fall semester following the program, including increased engagement in the AfterZone at their school and in their classrooms, especially in STEM subject areas.

Increase students’ sense of competence overall as learners as well as specifically in math and science.

Increase student performance in key targeted mathematic skills.

Integrated Facilitation

Teaching teams consist of a district teacher, a community-based STEM educator, and an AfterZone staff member (pre-service teacher) to co-teach a 4-week curriculum.

Integrated Facilitation

Teams engage in intensive joint planning before the program begins.

PASA’s STEM Learning Community—a group of STEM community organizations, district math and science teachers, and faculty from Rhode Island College—serve as peer coaches in the planning process

Integrated Facilitation

Blended instruction combines positive youth development with experiential learning.

• Hands-on learning experiences to build critical thinking skills in STEM subjects.

Joint Planning/Training

Title Citywide # Training Hours

Generalist Teachers 30 25

Community Educators 30 30

AZ Facilitators 30 35

Math Specialists 15 30

Total 105

GC!

Providence Teachers

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=veoHYL_cS9I&feature=youtu.be (3:35-5:40)

Rallies and Ceremonies

Game Changer #2

Rallies and Ceremonies

Daily Rallies

Recognition Ceremonies

OASIS Morning Rally!

RED

Pump, pump, pump it up!

Pump that red team spirit up!

Keep, keep, keep it up!

Keep that red team spirit up!

Shout, shout, shout it out!

Shout that red team spirit out!

Gooooo summer learning!

BLUEI don’t know but I’ve been told (repeat)

The blue team’s looking mighty bold (repeat)

I don’t know but it’s been said (repeat)

In summer camp my wings will spread (repeat)

Sound Off!.........SUM-MER!

Sound Off!.........LEARN-ING!

Sound Off!...SUM-MER LEARN-ING IS GREAT!

Camp Fiver

GC!

Book-Based Theme

Game Changer #3

Books provide:

Setting- time period, location

Characters

Culture

Conflicts and resolutions

GC!

Video: http://www.thinktogether.org/think-togethers-middle-school-students-in-los-angeles-re-enact-the-hunger-games/ (1:06)

Parent Workshops

Game Changer #4

Parent Workshops

Springboard Collaborative, Philadelphia

Weekly one-hour parent workshops,

• Learn to pick a “just right” book and what to ask before, during and after reading together

Weekly communication logs

Parents demonstrate what they’ve learned in culminating event

Incentives for families

Parent Workshops

Results:

76% of students met or exceeded reading goals.

Average 3 month reading gain in 5 week program

Incentives got parents in the door- 91% attendance rate.

GC!

Springboard Parents

http://vimeo.com/48386810

Digital Media Production

Game Changer #5

Digital Media Production

Youth as producers, not just consumers of web-based and digital media

Global Kids- Race to the White House Program• Youth brainstorm relevant election issues and plant them via

geocaches in New York City

• Fellow geocachers can decide to move them closer to the White House if they think the issue is important

Digital Media Production

YouMedia Chicago: Model for library programs nationwide. Online magazine.

www.youmediachicago.org

Digital Media Production

Mozilla Webmaker offers free authoring tools and software:

From supercharging web video with Popcorn, to exploring and remixing with the X-Ray Goggles, to making your own web pages with Thimble.

“Like a Swiss Army knife or ‘superhero utility belt’ for webmaking.”

GC!

Download

the guide:

www.summerbestpractices.org

National Summer Learning Day June 21, 2013

www.summerlearning.org/SLD

Put your event on the map!

CLOSING ACTIVITY

THANK YOU!

www.summerlearning.org